Wood Burning Stoves and Pellet Stoves

Related Pages: Converting a Fireplace to a Wood Burning Stove ... Chimney Cleaning & Repair ... Where to Buy Firewood

Archived Q&A and reviews ▼

Archived Q&A and Reviews

Questions

Removal of old wood stove

June 2010

Where to turn to haul away a big heavy cast-iron wood stove? Must include removing the sheet-metal exhaust pipe, removing the cover plate from the ceiling, and preparing the hole in the ceiling (and roof???) for patching and painting. Has anyone had this done? Good experience, bad experience? How much should I expect to pay? Hettie

Reliance Appliance in berkeley (down there where Gilman has all those cool reuse places) WANTS your old wood stove. They'll take it for free, fix it up and give it new life like Mike Mulligan the Steam Shovel. IF they give you any slack, try Urban Ore. Reenie

Wood stove - disassembly, removal, etc.

Sept 2009

Desperately seeking recent recommendations for disassembly of a sheet-metal stovepipe that extends from a woodstove through the ceiling and attic crawl space and roof (obviously). Important that disassembly and removal be done as cleanly as possible. (It's in our bedroom!) Bonus points for knowing how and being able to execute the necessary roof and ceiling sealing and patching. Extra bonus points for being interested in taking away the wood stove (actually it's an old-fashioned freestanding open-faced cast-iron fireplace -- not EPA compliant). Extra-extra bonus points for finding value in the cast-iron for partial trade - or is that a pipedream, so to speak? Thank you!!!

I had my wood burning stove removed last year (it was in the living room). I wasn't there when it happened, so I don't know how it was done, but when I got home, there was no mess at all. The ceiling was patched and painted. I opted to leave the roof portion of the stove pipe/vent in place. It has a rain shield on it and I haven't had any problems with leaks. I don't know if this was short sighted on my part, but I needed to keep the budget down and save some money.

I listed my stove on freecycle.org and received several responses. I gave it away for free and was glad to do it. I didn't get any responses via BPN or craigslist when I tried to sell it. good luck

Looking for professional person to clean pellet stove

Dec 2008

Looking for a professional chimney person to do a full scope pellet stove cleaning with a reasonable price. Please let us know if you have somebody to recommand. Thank you! mom

I have a pellet stove and I have it cleaned and serviced by Wayne Foresman, 707-865-9423. Wayne's company is ECO TECH. He works mostly in Sonoma and Marin counties but will come to Berkeley on occasion. Tell him Rebecca in Berkeley gave you his name. Rebecca

Looking for EPA woodburning fireplace insert

Feb 2007

Does anyone have a recommendation for a business which sells/intalls EPA woodburning fireplace inserts? I am looking for a store that has a good selection (the one at Ashby Tubmakers was a bit limited). Perhaps there is somewhere in Danville/Concord/Hayward or surrounding East Bay Areas? Good and poor service reviews helpful as they are so pricey. thanks.

I got my fireplace insert at Superior Spas and Stoves in Hayward. Owner Reggie is very nice and helpful. I used Sally McNight, The Irish Sweep for installation. Very professional, efficient - they laid down a huge piece of cloth to protect my floors and cleaned up after. Best part is when there was a shortage of pellets, I came home one evening to find 2 bags of pellets, gratis from Reggie and delivered by The Irish Sweep! Caroline

Alternative fuel for wood burning stove

December 2006

We have given up burning wood in our drafty old fireplace for health and environmental reasons. But we miss having an occasional fire during the winter. Someday maybe we'll convert to a gas fireplace, but in the meantime, looking for alternatives. We've seen ''gel'' fireplace fuel in high-priced catalogs, which profess to require no chimney, etc. Has anyone used this stuff, what is it like? We have allergies/asthma, don't want anything at all toxic, etc. Are there any other options we could consider? Lori

I think that burning candles or gel is a nice alternative to the pollution of a wood fire for most people. But if you have allergies or asthma, any combustion products at all could be a problem. How about an electric fireplace log? A fire DVD? Electric candles? Or maybe just holiday lights around the fireplace? sunsol

Where can I buy a pellet stove?

November 2005

I wish to buy a pellet stove for our house and have it installed. I have no idea where to start with this. I know of one place in Berkeley that also makes hot tubs. But I also know that you can buy them on line, have them shipped here, and then hire an individual person to install it. Does anyone have any ideas or recommendations? I have decided I want a classic (old fashioned looking) fireplace insert. Chiara

I have a pellet stove, it was in the house when I bought it. I have it serviced by Wayne Foresman at ECO TECH, 707-865-9423. He knows everything about pellet stoves. I've only used him for servicing and repairs but he can definitely install and may have advice about how to buy. I like my pellet stove very much, it heats my little house quickly and I spend less than $20 a month on heat in the winter. Tell him Rebecca sent you. Rebecca

Someone to clean pellet stove & chimneypipe

Feb 2005

I'm stumped looking for someone to clean our pellet stove and chimneypipe. I called Tubmakers, where the stove was purchased, but the one name they dug up was a wrong number. Irish Sweep told me they don't do pellet stoves. Is there anyone out there that will clean out the stove and pipe for us? To me, it doesn't seem that different from cleaning a fireplace or woodstove, but for some reason none of the chimneysweeps I've talked to will do it. Help! Thanks! JP

I have a pellet stove and I get my cleaned by Wayne Foresman of ECO TECH, 707-865-9423. He's in Sonoma County, he comes to the East Bay about once a month to service clients here, he was recommended to me by Reggie at Superior Spas and Woodstoves in Hayward. Wayne is great, he loves his work. I don't use Tubmakers for anything but buying pellets, they have never been helpful when I need it. You can write me if you more questions. Thanks